Many Roads Lead Out of Rome to Day-Trip Destinations

My first stop was Tarquinia’s famed underground necropolis, a short drive east of town.

While Romulus and Remus were busy founding Rome on the banks of the Tiber in the 7th Century BC, the citizens of Tarquinia were preparing for the afterlife in a big way.

Infrared pictures have catalogued nearly 10,000 tombs in Tarquinia’s necropolis, an area about five kilometers long and one kilometer wide.

Many have been penetrated by periscope and dated by scholars from the 7th through 5th centuries BC, and an estimated 300 have extensive wall paintings.

Most of these frescoes reveal easily interpreted scenes of daily Etruscan life, some of them so erotic that they were defaced and burned during the Inquisition in AD 1100.

Most of the paintings, however, are just as they were 24 to 26 centuries ago, when the last fires were lit to consume the oxygen and the tomb entrances were sealed with stones.

Return to Brilliance

Some 50 tombs have been officially entered. Of those, only four are open for viewing at any one time because continuous exposure to humidity and body heat destroys the colors of the wall paintings.

After a year, those four are closed for 10 years to allow the ferrous oxide and malachite- and lapis lazuli-based colors to return to their ancient brilliance.

The old adage that all roads lead to Rome also works in reverse. Such wonders as Tarquinia’s museum and necropolis are less than a two-hour drive away in nearly any direction from the Eternal City.

And while no one should miss the majesty of the Coliseum in both sunshine and moonlight, or the sense of walking in history’s footsteps in the ruins of the Forum, day trips can be welcome respites from Rome’s relentless crowds and confusion.

Americans with more than three days to explore Rome should consider at least one out-of-town trip.

Pleasure Palace

Rental cars offer the most freedom. But if you don’t want to cope with Rome’s traffic--”red lights are just suggestions, yellow lights are for decoration,” as the locals say--most of the outstanding day-trips can easily be taken on public transportation.

Less than an hour’s drive east of Rome is Villa Adriana (Hadrian’s Villa), a pleasure palace started in AD 118 by the Emperor Hadrian as a country retreat.

A man of great intelligence, Hadrian also was an extensive traveler. At this villa, he re-created many of the architectural treasures he saw elsewhere in the Hellenistic world. With its courtyards, terraces, statues, baths, Egyptian canals, the complex is amazing. Stop first at the museum at the entrance.

Consider also visiting the town of Tivoli, several kilometers further up the hill. Follow signs in the town square to the Villa d’Este, built in the mid-16th Century by a Catholic cardinal.

The villa itself is moldering away from lack of care, but the garden, with its hundreds of fountains, streams and rivulets, is magnificent, particularly when illuminated on summer nights.

Get Precise Information

Best timing for this trip: Leave Rome after the noon traffic rush. From Hadrian’s Villa, continue to Villa d’Este. Both are open until 90 minutes before sunset, daily except Mondays.

Buses to Tivoli depart approximately every 20 minutes from Via Gaeta behind the Termini railroad station in Rome; check with the tourist office or your hotel concierge for precise information. Round-trip is 3,400 lira (about $2.90 U.S.).

Get off at the Bivio Villa Adriana stop (the kilometer 27 marker); follow the signs to Hadrian’s Villa, a one-mile walk. Or stay on the bus to the main square of Tivoli and take a cab.

Rome is a new city, compared to ancient Palestrina, high in the hills and 38 kilometers to the south.

One of Italy’s most outstanding and least-known treasures, Palestrina dates from pagan times and was famed for the oracle in the Temple of Fortuna Primigenia, the mother and nurse of the gods.

In ancient times, Palestrina was so important that huge signal fires lit the shrine at night so it could be seen by mariners at sea.

In the 17th Century, the lavish Palazzo Barberini was built on the foundations of the original temple.

Today it is a museum containing many relics from the oracle and temple, including the remains of a statue of the goddess Fortuna and a large, extremely fine mosaic, “Nile in Flood,” done in the 1st Century BC for a wall of the temple’s sanctuary.

Exposed by Bombing

Bombings during World War II exposed major terraces of the ancient temple, now restored on the slopes in front of the museum.

This is a good day-trip to drive yourself. There are many trattorias in Palestrina serving inexpensive and tasty lunches, and the day-trip can include a stop at Tivoli on the way back to Rome.

The ancient port of Rome, Ostia Antica, was once on the sea at the mouth of the Tiber. Thanks to the silt of centuries, today it is near the Leonardo da Vinci airport (also called Fiumicino), a short subway ride from metro Rome.

Begun in the 4th Century BC and virtually abandoned around the 5th Century, this ruin has been completely excavated and offers a good look at early city planning and Roman life.

If you are driving, do not confuse this old city for Ostia, a modern resort nearby. Underground trains between Ostia Antica and Rome’s Termini station are the best mode of travel for this day-trip. Italy’s tourist information offices, known as the EPT, have an excellent free guide to this area.

Bracciano is both a town and one of Italy’s beautiful crater lakes.

The grand 15th-Century Odescalchi castle dominates the town and is open to visitors; don’t miss the panorama from the battlements.

Viterbo is one of the major centers of medieval art in Italy, and its civic museum is loaded with Etruscan and Roman treasures. Save time for wandering the picturesque old quarter, well preserved within ancient walls.

Orvieto (which translates from medieval Italian to “old town”) is spectacular on approach, a walled Etruscan city built like a fortress on top of a volcanic upthrust.

Brilliant Mosaics

Start your wanderings at the 13th-Century church. The contemporary bronze doors are by Emilio Greco, and the facade is a brilliant mass of multicolored mosaics depicting Biblical scenes.

The interior of the cathedral has more art, the most significant of which are frescoes finished by 15th-Century artisan Signorelli in a small chapel in the left transept. Art scholars believe these were Michelangelo’s inspiration for “The Last Judgment” altar wall of the Sistine Chapel.

Orvieto also is famous for its wine--the best is labeled Barberani Produzione Orvieto Classico . There are a number of wine shops across the square from the cathedral. There are also outstanding handcrafted pottery and ceramics in unusual designs.

This loop north into Etruscan territory is a full day, so get an early start from Rome.

Tarquinia is a good first stop, and if you get there before the museum opens at 9 a.m., you can pass the time by wandering the narrow, twisting streets of the old quarter. There are several outdoor cafes in the square facing the museum, so enjoy an espresso in the morning sun.

Short excursions from Rome can be made year-round, but September through November and March through June are prime times. But don’t go on a Sunday or Monday.

There are 4 million people in Rome and 2 million cars, and nearly all of them hit the road for a holiday on Sunday. Most museums and other interesting places are closed on Monday.

If you intend to take day-trips from Rome, consider staying at the Cavalieri Hilton International on Monte Mario, five miles north of the central city and 20 miles from the airport.

Although the official rate for a double is $180 to $277 U.S., plus Italy’s 18% value-added tax, ask about the Premium Plus plan ($160 for two, including tax and service) and the Two-for-One Weekend plan (about $140 for Friday and Saturday night, including tax and Continental breakfast).

A complimentary shuttle runs between the hotel and the Spanish Steps six days a week, and the hotel’s park-like location near the city’s ring road helps avoid some of Rome’s incredible traffic when it’s time to leave town. Ask for a room facing the city--the view stretches from the Villa Borghese to St. Peter’s.

Sightseeing tours are available. American Express, for example, has a Tivoli trip at 35,000 lira (about $27 U.S.). See your hotel’s concierge or one of the many tourist bureaus scattered around town.

If you prefer to tour with a private English-speaking guide, rates are 60,000 lira (about $46 U.S.) for three hours; or 70,000 lira for one family in a private car for three hours (the car is extra), and 180,000 to 210,000 lira for nine-hour trips into the countryside.

For more information, contact the Italian Government Travel Office, 360 Post St., Suite 801, San Francisco 94108, phone (415) 392-5266.